Workers Compensation Newsletters

Arbitration and Mediation

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) has come to play an increasing role in the resolution of workers' compensation disputes. Almost half the states now offer arbitration and/or mediation as viable ADR methods.

Black Lung Benefits Act - "Operators" and "Responsible Operators"

Under the Black Lung Benefits Act)

Meaning of "Miner" for Purposes of Black Lung Benefits Act

The Black Lung Benefits Act provides for total disability claims for United States miners suffering from pneumoconiosis (aka black lung disease), which was contracted due to their employment. Originally, a "miner" was considered to be a person who was employed in an underground coal mine. However, subsequent amendments to the Act deleted the "underground" requirement so that miners working in above-ground environments would also be covered.

Payment for Representation of a Social Security Claimant

A social security claimant may choose to be represented by a third party in his dealings with the Social Security Administration (SSA). If the third party accepts the role of "representative" on behalf of the claimant, he is prohibited from charging the claimant a fee without prior authorization from the SSA. This holds true even if the claim is denied. To obtain approval from the SSA, the representative must use either of two fee authorization processes.

Second Injury Funds

Oftentimes, an employee may be suffering from an injury or disability and then be subsequently injured while working for the employer. Generally, the states have addressed this issue by creating a second injury fund. For the most part, the employer is only responsible for the workers' compensation benefits attributable to the injury incurred while the employee was working for the employer. The second injury fund would pick up where the employer left off by paying the difference between what the employer pays and what the employee is entitled for the total effect of all of his injuries.